Primary outcome
Choose one: more enquiries, bookings, sales or more efficient customer service.
Free practical guide
Website redesign: 25-point checklist
Use this list before requesting proposals. It helps you compare suppliers, protect existing visibility and record exactly what the redesign includes.
Short answer
What must a website redesign agreement cover?
Record the business goal, content, technical responsibilities, review rounds, launch method and how results will be measured. Decide which URLs and content must remain, who supplies text and images, and what happens if a form or email notification fails.
Updated 28 September 2026. Using this checklist does not commit you to AI net.
1–5: goals
Start with the business outcome
Without a clear outcome, a redesign easily becomes only a visual refresh.
Priority customer
Describe who the site speaks to first and which problem that person wants solved.
Priority services
Select the services that need their own page and a clear next action.
Success measure
Decide whether to measure forms, calls, bookings, downloads or sales.
Scope boundary
Record what is not included to prevent disputes over price and timing.
6–10: content
Keep what works, repair what does not
A good redesign does not discard useful content or addresses customers already use.
Content inventory
List current pages and mark each one: keep, update, merge or remove.
Writing responsibility
Agree whether the client supplies final copy or writing is part of the project.
Images and rights
Check the source, licence, file size and alternative text of every important image.
Trust information
Verify the business name, ID, contact details, service area, terms and privacy information.
Languages
Choose languages and decide who maintains accurate translations after launch.
11–15: search
Protect organic traffic
A new design must not break pages that already attract visitors.
Current URLs
Record important URLs before changes and keep them whenever possible.
Redirects
When a URL changes, add a permanent 301 redirect to the correct new page.
Page titles
Every priority page needs a distinct title, H1 heading and meta description.
Internal links
Guide people and crawlers from main pages to services and the next useful action.
Sitemap and canonicals
Check sitemap.xml, canonical URLs and hreflang links before requesting indexing.
16–20: technology
Test the entire customer journey
A homepage opening successfully does not prove that the website works.
Mobile layout
Use a real phone to check the menu, text, buttons, forms and horizontal overflow.
Forms and confirmation
Submit a controlled test and verify on-screen confirmation, storage and email delivery, including spam folders.
Speed and images
Resize oversized images and remove resources the page does not use.
HTTPS and security
Confirm HTTPS, update responsibility, backups, access rights and form spam protection.
Consent and analytics
Analytics must respect the selected consent. Test every consent option.
21–25: launch
Agree responsibilities after launch
A redesign is not finished when files are copied to the server.
Approval
Record who approves the design, content, price and launch time.
Rollback plan
Take a working backup and agree how to restore the previous version if launch fails.
Indexing check
After launch, check robots.txt, the sitemap, priority-page status and server errors.
Ownership and access
The business should own the domain, hosting, analytics and service accounts or retain permanent access.
Support and monitoring
Agree the support period, correction limits, updates and how enquiry delivery will be monitored.
Use it in your request
Ask every supplier to address the same points.
When each proposal states the goal, scope, content, technical responsibilities, launch method and support, you can compare more than the headline price.
Request a written proposal from AI net →Frequently asked
Three questions before deciding
What should be decided before a website redesign?
Define the business goal, priority customers and services, content to retain, required functions, responsibilities and how success will be measured.
How do you protect existing search visibility?
Keep important URLs or redirect them permanently. Check titles, descriptions, canonical URLs, the sitemap and internal links before launch.
What should be tested before launch?
Test mobile layouts, forms, email confirmations, links, HTTPS, consent choices, analytics and the restore backup.